Tests fail until HDS restart

[Skirge]

I've noticed that my scheduled self-tests fail at seemingly random intervals. Short tests are scheduled from within HDS, while extended ones are scheduled using Task Scheduler. When this happens, a simple restart of HDS (which I'm not running as a service) causes the tests to run just fine. When this occurs, manually running any of the self-tests will also fail. I can still manually trigger surface tests without doing a restart of HDS, however. The next time this happens, I'll go ahead and submit a rest report.

[hdsentinel]

Thanks, but I'm afraid this can be "normal" and absolutely not a bug/limitation of Hard Disk Sentinel (exactly the opposite).

Generally the Short / Extended self tests run "inside" the hard disk drive and as described in the Help:

https://www.hdsentinel.com/help/en/62_testfaq.html

In some cases, these hardware tests (Disk -> Short self test, Disk -> Extended self test) are not available, not supported or they result in an error quickly even in relatively low number of problems. No further information is returned about the result, for example it is not possible to list the sector(s) which are damaged. In such case, an appropriate software testing method is required.


There is no control how these internal hardware self tests run: once started, they run independently from any software (including Hard Disk Sentinel) and managed/executed (and stopped/failed) by the disk drive itself.

A very common problem could be that Windows completely ignores that a self test is running and attempt to put the drive to standby/sleep state which aborts the disk tests of course.
While Hard Disk Sentinel is active (running) it automatically attempts to keep the drive "awake" when the self test started (this is why you may not see problems when HDS started/restarted) but if HDS is not running - then it can't do anything - and the disk test can fail.

So for scheduled self tests, it is always better to run in Hard Disk Sentinel - and keep the software running, as then it can prevent standby/sleep state.

[Skirge]

Thanks for the reply, but I'm having trouble wrapping my head around this, so I hope you don't mind me inquiring further. When this happens, if I manually trigger a short self-test from within HDS, it will fail* repeatedly on every single drive. But, as soon as I restart HDS, it will run just fine on any/all of them. At least in my mind, that would seem to indicate that something in HDS is "stuck" and the restart of HDS resolves whatever was causing the blockage. If not, would you mind explaining what else might be going on?

Thanks!

* "fail" in this case meaning it runs for 30 seconds on the dot and ceases, without really completing the test